Tofferson



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. A. GHRISTOPFERSON.

-INTBRLOGKING SWITCH AND SIGNAL.

No. 489,581. Patented Jan. 10, 1893.

W/TNESSES NITED STATES PATENT 01mins.

CHRISTIAN A. CHRISTOFFERSON, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

INTERLQCKING SWITCH AND SIGNAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 489,581, dated January10, 1893.

Application filed June 23,1892- Serial No. 437,740. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHRISTIAN A. CHRIS- TOFFERSON, (formerly of Denmark,who has declared his intention to become a citizen of the UnitedStates,) residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State ofIndiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signalsfor Interlocking Railway-Switches, of which the following is aspecification.

My said invention relates to apparatus by which switches controlling twoor more routes or tracks are enabled to simultaneously so control oradjust the signals connected therewith that only the proper signal forthe route to which the switch has been adjusted can be given; and itconsists in certain mechanism for the purpose whereby simplicity,certainty, and security of operation are attained with a comparativelysmall number of parts. Said invention will be first fully described, andthen pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part hereof,and on which similar letters of reference indicate similar parts, Figure1 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a signal station equippedwith my improved apparatus; Fig. 2 a transverse sectional view of thesame; Fig. 3 a horizontal sectional view looking downwardly from thedotted line 3 3 in Fig. 1; Figs. 4 and 5 detail views on an enlargedscale, of the devices which are especially peculiar to my invention, intheir several positions; Fig. 6 a diagrammatic plan View of a railwaytrack having two switches adapted to be manipulated by the use of myinvention; Fig. 7 a transverse sectional view of the track on the dottedlines 7 7 in Fig. 6, and including an elevation of the signal post andsignals; Fig. 8 a detail View of the upper portion of said signal post,on an enlarged scale; Fig. 9 a rear elevation of the same; Fig. 1.0 adetail horizontal sectional view, looking downwardly from the dottedline 10 10 in Fig. 2; Fig. 11 a detail side elevation of the parts whichare especially peculiar to my invention, when placed in a horizontalposition, and Fig. 12 a central sectional view of the same.

In said drawings the portions marked A represent the frame-work in thesignal house (also said house as a whole) which supports the mechanism;B B the switch levers; Othe signal lever; D a housing containing themechanism immediately operated by said signal lever; E a rock-shaftwhereby the operation of one of the switches selects the appropriatesignal; F and G chains or ropes running to the signals, whereby they areoperated; H a chain or rope whereby the return of the signals toposition when released is insured I and J two switches illustrated inconneciion with my invention; K and L the two switch or branch routes,and M the main rail way track.

I have illustrated said invention in connection with a main track havingtwo switches, with one signal for said main track, and one signal forsaid two switches, and this is one of the simplest arrangementspossible. Ob viously the system may embody only a single switch,and itmay be extended to any extent. Where the extension consists in addingmore switches, only, the signaling apparatus may remain as shown,itbeing only necessary usually to provide one signal for all theswitches on one track; but the signals may of course be multiplied incase it is desired to do so. Where there are additional tracks orcrossings,additional signals m ust, of course, be provided.

A leading feature of my invention consists in the construction whereby avertical arrangement of the selecting mechanism is possible, which isthus enabled to be brought within the signal station, and occupy aportion of the lower story thereof, when, as is usual, such station istwo stories in height. The principal parts of said mechanism are thevertically movi ng-latch-bar O, the catches F and G, and the cam-bearingrock-shaft E, or equivalents, which, with the surrounding or supportinghousing or structure are known in railway parlance as the selector.

The frame A is, of course, arranged suitably to support the mechanism,and varies according to circumstances. Bearings a support the switch andsignal levers, and other bearings a a and a support the sheaves for thechains or ropes running to the signals, while bearings'a and a supportthe bell-crank levers whereby the rods running from the switch leversare given the necessary change of direction.

The switch levers B and B are of a form common to this class ofapparatus, and are suitably mounted in the bearings a, as shown. Rods Band B run from said levers to the switches, and have the bell-cranklevers b and b (see especially Figs. 1 and 6) interposed at the pointsof change of direction, all as will be readily understood. Upon thevercal portions of these rods 13 and B in my preferred arrangement, asshown in the principal figures of the drawings, are fingers b whichengage with arms E E on the rockshaft E, for purposes which will bepresently described. Rollers r, mounted in bearings a" upon theframework, guide these rods in their vertical movement, so that theyshall not vary from the proper position to operate said shafteffectively. In their general arrangement these switch rods are of anordinary character, as is illustrated more particularly in thediagrammatic View Fig. 6, where they are shown as embodying a second andthird change ,of direction by means of the bell crank levers, and areconnected to the switches I and J, respectively, which lead to sidetracks K and L from the main track M, all of which are of an ordinaryandwell known construction and arrangement.

The signal lever G is in itself constructed and mounted very much likecorresponding levers in other systems. To it, however, is connected, bymeans of a link cor otherwise, the vertically moving latch-bar O, bymeans of which, and the mechanism connected therewith, as will bepresently explained, I am enabled to operate two or more signals withthe single lever, the appropriate one of which has been selected by themovement of the corresponding switch lever. This latch-bar has adouble-sided head at the lower end, with which the catches F G on thechains or wires engage, as will be presently described.

The housing D is arranged to contain the mechanism especially peculiarto my invention. Its upper or smaller part constitutes a vertical way inwhich thelatch-bar 0 moves. Its lower portion contains the catches whichare attached to the signal chains or wires, and the cam or cams by whichthey are caused to assume their appropriate positions, and its size isenlarged to accommodate this mechanism, as shown most plainly in Figs. 4and 5. At its lower end it is provided with rests d d with which wingson the catches will engage, and by which they are supported whendisengaged from the latch-bar.

The shaft E passes centrally through the housing D, and out horizontallyto one side of said case, and is mounted in an appropriate bearing 6 onthe frame-work at one end, and in one side of said housing D at theother. It is provided with an arm E on which is a weight 6', which holdsit in the position shown, except when forcibly moved therefrom,and

with arms E and E with which the fingers b on the rods 13 and B willengage. \Vithin the housing D and rigidly mounted on said shaft is a camE positioned between the two catches. The various positions of theseparts are shown by means of full and dotted lines in Fig. 4, in whichall the parts are also shown at rest, and in their normal position, withboth the signals set at danger, but ready to be operated to show themain track clear.

The chains or wires F and G run from the signals on the distant signalpost 1 to the catches F and G within the housin Said catches are ofpeculiar construction. They stand substantially vertically within thehousing D alongside the cam E on the shaft E, by which cam they areseparated and operatcd. They are respectively provided with wings f andg which are adapted to comein contact with the rests d and d, and whichaid in the operation, as will be presently described. The upperends areturned inwardly at right angles and adapted to engage with the head ofthe latch-bar C, and are caused to do so by the angular direction of thewings f and 9, except when forced into the other position by means ofthe cam E. It should be mentioned here that there is a stop d inside thehousing D, with which the lower end of the latch-bar comes in contactwhen in its lower position, and whereby said latch-bar is held so thatits notches will just register with the points of the catches, as shown.

The chain or wire II runs to the counter weights W \V for the signalarms S S" to which it is connected by the usual short chains w 20,whereby the certain return of said counter weights is secured in caseanything (as snow or ice) should prevent their easy and certainautomatic movement. These signals, and counter weights, and theconnections, are all of a well known construction, and need not befurther described herein. The post P carries brackets 17 for the lampsX, and the counter weights are connected to the signal arms by rods 3 s,all in a well known manner.

The operation is as followsz-The parts being positioned as shown in theprincipal drawings, and it being desired to signala train to pass aheadover the main track, all that is necessary is to pull the signal lever,the switches being already set, when the signal arm S will drop to theposition shown by means of dotted lines in Fig. 8, which indicates thatthe main track is clear, and that the approaching train can pass. WVhen,however, it is desired to open the switch, either the switch lever B orB is thrown back, when the finger b will come in contact with an arm onthe rock-shaft E, which rocks said shaft and its cam E so that thepositions shown by the full lines in Fig. 4 are changed to those shownby the dotted lines. Pulling the signal lever after this is done willdrop the signal arm S instead of the signal arm S, and thus indicate tothe approaching train that, if it proceeds,

it will enter one of the tracks K or L instead of passing along over themain track M. The parts are shown in Fig. 5 in the positions they occupywhen the signal arm S is dropped, (see dotted lines, Fig. 8) and thetrain thus signaled to proceed over the main track. After the train haspassed, and the signal lever 'is thrown back to normal position, theparts return to the positions indicated by the full lines in Figs. 4 and8. The weighte operates to rock the shaft E, and thus return the camthereon to its position, while, as before explained, the wing f on thecatch F throws it over into engagement with the latch bar 0. The weightof the chain or wire F aids in this, as will be readily understood.

In Figs. 11 and 12 is shown the arrangement, when, as is sometimes thecase, for lack of room or otherwise, it becomes desirable to locate theapparatus in a horizontal instead of a vertical position. I, however,much prefer the vertical position to the horizontal, and thisillustration is only to show that the horizontal position can beemployed. In these drawings, the parts, so far as they are similar tothose shown in the principal drawings, have been given the samelettersof reference. The weight 6 is mounted on an arm, arranged in a crankposition to the operating arm instead of parallel therewith, andoperates in the manner that its changed position calls for. Bearings '0o are provided through which the catches F and G pass, the former ofwhich has a rest for said catch F, and is positioned close to thehousing D, and the latter of which is provided with a rest for saidcatch G and is positioned near its outer end. This arrangement is sothat the gravity of said catches themselves will aid in causing them todrop into proper position, when released from the operation of the cam.

Having thus fully described my said invention,whatIclai1n as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, with the signallever and the wires ropes or chains running to the signals, of alatch-bar, a catch connected to each of said chains and adapted toengage with said latch bar, a cam shaft passing transversely of thecatches and bearing a cam or cams adapted to shift the positions of saidcatches, and an engagement between the cam shaft and the switch levers.

2. The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, of a singlesignal lever carrying the catch-bar, two or more catches connected tothe signal chains ropes or wires, and adapted to alternately engage withsaid catch bar, and mechanism by which the engagement and dis engagementof said parts is effected, said mechanism consisting of fixed supportswhereby said catches are thrown toward said latch by gravity, and alocking cam positioned between them whereby the force of gravity isovercome and first one and thenthe other of said catches thrown out ofsaid engagement.

3. The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, .of the signallever, the chains ropes or wires running to the signal apparatus, aconnection between said lever and said chains, ropes or wires,consisting of a vertically movable latch -bar and vertically arrangedcatches adapted to engage overa head or into notches on said latch-bar,and supports for said catches when disengaged.

4. The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, with catchesarranged vertically in a housing and provided with side extensions orwings, of rests or supports in said housing below said wings adapted tosupport said catches and cause them to incline inwardly by the force oftheir own gravity.

5." The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, of the housingD, a catch-bar moving vertically in said housing, a stop to limit itsdownward movement, two or more catches adapted to alternately engagetherewith, and a cam located between said catches, whereby one or theother, but not both, are thrown and held out of engagement with saidlatch bar.

6. The combination ,in an interlocking signal apparatus, of the switchlever, connections to the signals which are attachable and detachable toand from said lever, a rook-shaft having a cam by which the detachmentis effected, arms on said rock-shaft, and fingers mounted on the rodsconnected to the switch levers and extending behind the arms on the rockshaft, and adapted as said rods are pulled to come in contact with saidarms and thereby operate said rock shaft.

'7. The combination, in an interlocking signal apparatus, of switchlevers, rods running therefrom to the switches, projecting fingersthereon, a signal lever, two or more connections running thereto fromsignals at a distant point which are adapted to be alternatively engagedtherewith, means of engagement consisting of catches which areautomatically forced into engagement, and a cam on a rock-shaft adaptedto be operated by the fingers on the switch rods to effect suchdisengagement.

8. The combination, of the switch levers B and B, rods runningtherefromto the switches, and provided with fingers, the signal lever C, thevertically moving latch bar 0, ahousing D within which said latch bar issituated, catches F and G also Within said housing arranged to engagewith said latch bar, a cam mounted on a rock-shaft and situated betweensaid catches, a weighted arm on said rock shaft whereby it is normallyheld in position, and other arms thereon with which the fingers on theswitch rods will engage, whereby its position will be changed as theswitches are opened, and a different one of the catches brought intoengagement with the latch bar, thus making ready for the display of adifferent signal.

9. The combination with the catches of an interlocking signal apparatus,of a cam mounted IIO on a rock shaft and situated between said catches,a weighted arm on said shaft for holding said earn in one position,whereby one of said catches will engage with the latch bar, and otherarms which engage with fingers or projections on thes\vitel1rods,w11ereby the position may be reversed.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, atIndianapolis, Indiana, this 17th day of June, A. D. 1892.

G. A. CHRISTOFFERSON.

Witnesses:

CHESTER BRADFORD, .T. A. WALsH.

